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Stophl

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About Stophl

  • Birthday 06/07/1967

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    WA, Australia
  • Interests
    Languages, classical music, reading, history

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  1. I wonder what a story called 'The Adventure begins Wednesday' would look like. But I like the story I found in its place, 'Me ’n Riley', already - I can feel the heat and humidity on my skin - but maybe that is the early Australian summer. And I notice there is enough space for plenty of chapters - very good!
  2. Hehe, I was looking out for a story by that name. Thought it was a strange title, too. Guess I am going silly...
  3. The pictures from Florida we see down here in Australia are heart breaking. I don't know what to say. On the other hand both leaders of both parties have expressed their support an solidarity with America and the LGBT community specifically. Buildings in the east have been lit up in pink in solidarity apparently.
  4. I feel the same. I wished all of Cole's stories were at least as long as War And Peace. I just do not want to part with the characters Cole develops so well. And he does that not only with the protagonists, the baddies are as life-like and complex as the rest as his newest story shows. But there is another thing that draws me to Cole's stories and that's the protagonists' personalities. They are honest boys, good at heart. Pretending to be someone they are not is hard for them. And yet they struggle to be the person they falsely believe society expects them to be. Cole's messages to young readers 'You have no reason to be ashamed of yourself. Be true to yourself. Do not try to be someone other people want you to be.' and from there 'Stand up for yourself. Ask for help. Make friends.' did help me immensely in my life, even when I was not a young reader anymore. To be fair, there are a lot great writers here on awesomedude, who develop their characters and plots as well and I enjoy reading their stories very much. I wished some of them would write more and I would have more time to read more. Because I consider myself still awesomedude-forum-illiterate and don't know how to open a new thread I just wanted to add something here I found on Zeit online, a German weekly, I wanted to share. I think it has the potential of a beginning of a great story if it wasn't bitter reality for one of the persons described. It is an article about a 15 year old Syrian refugee, an orphan, stuck in Istanbul, Turkey and his best friend who managed to make it to central Europe. "Wie kann Angela Merkel uns das antun?" Auf seinem Handy hat Kalil ein Foto von seinem besten Freund Rafaat. Es zeigt den 16-jährige Syrer, wie er in der Münchner Allianz Arena den FC Bayern anfeuert. Rafaat hat die Vereinsfarben auf seine Wange gemalt und lacht. Kalil schaut traurig auf das Bild, und sagt mit leiser Stimme: "Die Europäer können sich abschotten, so sehr sie wollen, ich werde es trotzdem irgendwie zu meinem Freund nach Deutschland schaffen." (How can Angela Merkel do this to us? On his mobile phone Kalil has a picture of his best friend Rafaat. It shows the 16 year old Syrian cheering for the FC Bayern soccer team in the Allianz Arena stadion at Munich, Germany. Rafaat has painted his cheeks in the team's colours and he is laughing. With a sad expression Kalil looks at the picture and then says with a small voice: 'The Europeans can try to wall themselves in as much as they want to. I will somehow make it to my friend in Germany.') The article then goes on to describe the miserable conditions Kalil and other Syrian refugees are living in Istanbul. There is no happy ending although I hope the journalist made an effort to help Kalil. I found this article very moving and I hope there will be a mobile phone, a 'Handy', in the future showing the picture of a laughing Kalil, re-united with his best friend...
  5. Just something regarding lawyers: https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/10-professions-which-attract-the-most-psychopaths-034144524.html and they seem to rank fairly high. I am not surprised that civil servants are on there too. A few of those tried to ruin my life last year...
  6. Three days of looking forward to the next chapter, three days of my mind frantically playing through all possible possibilities...
  7. Could it be that the Republicans have to re-group, because the traditional Republican responses to at least external challenges do not seem to work anymore? Neither the war in Iraq nor in Afghanistan (I seem to remember both were started under Repuclican watch) did effectively stabilise either region. Instead both are on the verge of chaos with both ISIS and Taliban on the advance again. I cannot imagine that even the Republicans would want to get embroiled in another war in Syria. And what of the new challenges posed by China and Putin's Russia? And what of the hundreds of thousands of people on the move around the Mediterranean, fleeing war or poverty? Or closer to home: the refugees from Latin America trying to get to the USA? The politicians in Europe are faced with the same challenges and only time will tell whether they will be able to come up with appropriate, acceptable or successful answers and solutions. Right wing parties in Europe are on the rise in the meantime. What of global warming? I guess even Republicans find it difficult these days to believably deny its existence. And it seems to me as an outsider that the question of private gun-ownership is coming to a head in the US. Maybe Republicans have become too complacent over the past twenty years. Maybe they assumed they would beat the Democrats easily on questions like health care. Suddenly there are challenges they have no viable solutions for. In the meantime the jester has the floor. (please accept my aüologies: I still have to find out how to quote the right way)
  8. I didn't know this speech. I have to say I am quite smitten. No wonder people followed him like madmen! But seriously: you have to remember that Hitler was appointed - not elected - chancellor by a senile president, v.Hindenburg, an arch-conservative who was a Prussian general in WWI. The Nazis failed to win the elections in March 1933, the first elections under Hitler (although they made considerable gains). It took a lot of intimidation of the public and the elimination of all parties left of the centre until the Nazis won the election in November 1933. And international observers wouldn't have approved then (had there been any), I am sure (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_election,_November_1933). So, my dear Americans, I don't think you need to worry too much - yet...
  9. I think it is a bit beside the point to debate how Israel came into existence or whether it rightfully exists. Israel is a fact and several generations of Israelis have grown up there. They claim Israel as their own with the same right as Australians, Kiwis, Canadians and ultimately Americans claim their countries as their own. Given the histories of pogroms culminating in the Holocaust and increasing antisemitic attacks in Europe I don't think Israelis would give up lightly the only homeland they have.
  10. When I started to read Farmboy I was looking for a fitting description for the way Derrick reports what's happening to him. Then I thought of one: laconic. And then I read the same word a few paragraphs later in the story! And initially I was a bit confused by the blue paragraphs. But it worked really well for the last flash-back. Initially I thought some text got lost when abruptly we are transported to this horrible scene (I hope I am not giving away too much here).
  11. I like this website: http://etymonline.com. I just like to know where words come from. This is what they say under 'devilry': devilry (n.) late 14c., from devil + -ry; deviltry (1788) is a corrupt formation from it. English isn't my first language and both devilry and deviltry work for me; corrupt is a bit harsh, isn't it? Languages do develop and deviltry is actually easier to pronounce for me...
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